downloads

Ziggy TV 4.2.2 Review

Ziggy TV is an all-in-one YouTube downloader and file converter with some extras, including a Net radio player, streaming Internet TV, free movies, and online games. It searches for music and videos on YouTube and plays or downloads and converts files to audio formats such as MP3, AAC, and even FLAC, as well as video formats. It's compatible with most versions of Windows, including Windows 8. While it's freeware, it's the free version of a "Pro" shareware app that offers higher quality conversions and more formats, so some of its premium features may be disabled.… Read more

Porn piracy tracked to computers in Vatican City

Even the residents of Vatican City need to be entertained, but are they pirating porn?

The blog TorrentFreak recently compiled a report alleging that computers located in Vatican City are downloading pornography. A recent tale of Irish priests enjoying first-run hits at their home movie nights piqued the blog's interest to see what the residents of Vatican City have been downloading.

TorrentFreak recruited the help of ScanEye, a Web site that tracks and analyzes this type of online activity. ScanEye's data found that computers inside Vatican City were downloading films like "Love Actually" and TV shows … Read more

App market soars with 13.4 billion downloads in Q1 2013

As people around the world become increasingly more reliant on their mobile devices, the app market continues to grow. New research from market analyst firm Canalys shows that the top four app stores hit 13.4 billion downloads worldwide in the first quarter of 2013. This is an 11 percent increase over all of 2012 combined.

"Apps have had a huge impact on the way consumers use mobile devices, what they value, and what they expect from smart phones and tablets," Canalys chief analyst for analytics Adam Daum said in a statement. "They are now central to … Read more

Save Internet video to your Mac with Kigo Video Downloader for Mac

Often, users want to watch Internet videos or edit them offline. Kigo Video Downloader for Mac, despite problematic operation in some instances, works well when it comes to saving and converting online videos.

The native installer set the program up quickly without any user agreement required, which was good for a freeware program. Upon startup, Kigo Video Downloader for Mac did contain a link to user instructions. In addition, the program's interface included arrows and descriptions of the particular buttons and their functions. The user interface was well-designed and intuitive, with good graphics and detail for each of the … Read more

Getting to know the new Firefox download manager

Mozilla just released Firefox 20 (download for Windows | Mac | Linux), which introduced a few new features, including a brand-new download manager. The new download manager works similarly to the old one, but with a couple of new twists.

The first change you'll notice is a new Download button next to the Home button. This gives you quick access to the last three downloads. The Download button will actually display the time remaining during a download, then change to an arrow when the download completes.

You can click on "Show All Downloads" or use the keyboard shortcut, Ctrl+… Read more

YTD Video Downloader 4.0

Formerly known as plain old YouTube Downloader, the recently renamed YTD Video Downloader updates to version 4.0 with a promise of 2x faster downloads and 2x faster video conversions, and perhaps more usefully, the ability to resume downloads after the temporary loss of an Internet connection. As usual, the installer includes a Spigot-based YTD Video Toolbar and offers to change your default search engine to Yahoo and add 5-6 shopping extensions to Google Chrome. Clicking the "Decline" button during the lone advertising screen in the installer lets users easily opt-out of all offers.

Downloading worked very well … Read more

Download videos with Video Downloader Super Lite

Video Downloader Super Lite promises to allow you to download videos from the Internet through a proprietary browser on your iPhone. This alone is a very powerful tool for those who want to take training videos, Webinars, or even music videos on the go from your favorite Web sites. There are, however, a number of limitations, and the performance of the app was variable depending on the video being downloaded and the speed of our connection.

Upon initial installation, you can immediately start browsing. The app uses a very simple Web interface with a banner ad placed below the address … Read more

Read Google Books from additional devices using Google Book Downloader for Mac

Those using Google Books often find the ability to read books on multiple devices lacking. Google Book Downloader for Mac allows users to turn these books into formats for use on additional reading devices, with some limited functionality.

Google Book Downloader for Mac is available as freeware without any payment required for upgrades, although during use it occasionally asks for donations to the designers. Despite the lack of a native installer, the program's small size allowed for a fast download and installation. As a freeware program, technical support appears absent, and the program does not have instructions. A small … Read more

Save streaming videos from YouTube directly on your hard drive

Saving videos directly from YouTube to your hard drive is a widely asked-for feature. One of the possible candidates to satisfy this demand is YouTube Video Downloader Pro. However, even though the thought of saving videos from YouTube directly to your computer with an integrated and seamless procedure seems attractive, this software doesn't deliver.

If you have found YouTube Downloader Pro while searching for the perfect solution, we advise against trying it. The installer asks for permission to change your default home page as well as your search engine. If you opt out of this, which you probably should, … Read more

Illegal music downloads dropped in 2012, says report

Fewer people are illegally downloading and sharing music, NPD Group said in a report today.

Among those surveyed for NPD's "Annual Music Study 2012," 40 percent who illegally downloaded music via peer-to-peer services in 2011 said they had stopped or decreased their illegal downloads in 2012.

Overall, the number of illegally downloaded songs from P2P services dropped by 26 percent in 2012 from 2011.

Part of that was due to an overall decline in the use of P2P services. At the 2005 peek of P2P file sharing networks, 33 million people used them. For 2012, that number … Read more